Once Upon A Timeline is a free game about time travel

Why yes, I have spent much of today going through Gamejolt's Adventure Jam collection. Unlike Grimstorm, Once Upon A Timeline is a more traditional point 'n click adventure. Well, traditional except for the fact that it's not about what you click, but when.

You can go anywhen from the late 1800s to early 2000s. The house changes over time, gaining new items and residents as you pass through the generations. Beyond that, it's pretty traditional. Most puzzles require finding the point in time that contains a specific item you need, and then working out how to get that item from the person who owns it. Of course, as a time travel adventure, your actions in the past can affect the events of the future.

If one thing disappoints me, it's the natural constraints of the gamejam format. Once Upon A Timeline is a great proof-of-concept, but a more detailed and in-depth version of the house would be all the more compelling. Here, there are only a small number of items to interact with or conversations to be had. It feels like an idea that has so much more room for experimentation.

Given that my only complain is that the central idea is so good I want more of it, it's probably worth a look. You can play Once Upon A Timeline, for free, at Gamejolt.

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.